Being wrong stinks. I would know, as I spend much time in Wronglandia. The same goes for coming up short, failing or goofing up. Many names, but you get the idea.

One of my favorite basketball players gives me some insight as to how to respond to being wrong. When you mess up, come up short, or just plain blow it the greatest step in moving past the ordeal is to admit your fault and own it. Easy to say, right?

The aforementioned basketball player (I’ll leave him nameless to avoid endless disputes about who is the greatest of all time, this generation, etc) recently had a game in which he was significantly deficient. He made some bad plays that could have cost his team the game. Fortunately, for me anyways, the team pulled together and squeaked out the victory. In his post-game interview the first thing he did was admit his wrongs. I like that.

I know I can learn something from his humility. Rather than throwing other people under the bus, even if they deserve it, I can own my part of the problem. Instead of playing it off as if it isn’t that big of a deal I could confront it so that all the people involved can truly move on from the situation.

Just my two cents. However, I suspect that I’m not the only frequent visitor to Wronglandia, and the best mode of transportation out seems to be laying down your pride, licking your wounds and getting over it.